All That Remains
by Labrynth
Summary: What we didn't get to see in Resident Evil 6. What happened on the other side of the game?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Capcom. No one is paying me to fix this mess. Don't I wish.

Author's Note: I have some major issues with Chris' campaign for a lot of reasons. Mostly because what leads us into the main story doesn't add up for me. The amnesia, the being MIA for 6 months, JILL... etc. I was originally going to call this FIXING WHAT CAPCOM SCREWED UP but figured it deserved a proper title. This is my attempt at answering the questions RE6 left us with and give us a view from the other side of events. Here's hoping I did a better job than Capcom did :)

**All That Remains**

**24 December 2012**

"Redfield," she screamed into the comm, "Redfield answer me Goddammit!" Her heart was slamming in her chest, her throat suddenly so tight she didn't think she would be able to take a breath, even if she tried. The ringing chaos of battle filled her ear piece and she thought she might be sick.

The sound of his groan met her ears but he still didn't answer. "Chris!" The comm center had gone completely silent. Everyone knew she hadn't wanted him to go on this trip. More than one of them had tried to talk him out of it.

_This isn't happening. It can't be happening._

But it was. Oh God, it really was. The comm filled with static and everyone held their breath. Then it went completely silent. Her heart dropped to somewhere around her ankles. Each second felt like an eternity.

"I've got him," the voice was out of breath. "It knocked him out, but I've got him."

"Piers! Is he okay?" The question was desperate and she didn't care. If everyone wanted to consider her weak because of it, she couldn't be bothered to give a shit. This was _not_ what they agreed to. This was _not_ how it was supposed to go.

"I think so Ma'am. Send an evac unit." The soldier's voice was staticky. "With a medic just to be sure. We-" His voice broke and she didn't think it was the connection. "We lost everyone else."

"They're already enroute to you Nivans, ETA just under an hour." Her hands gripped the back of the chair until her knuckles were white. Her face didn't look much better. Nausea hit her full force and her eyes welled with tears for their fallen comrades. But Chris was still alive and her heart felt just a little lighter because of it.

"Copy that. I'll send you our exact coordinates." There was something that might have been a short, dark laugh. "I don't think I can carry him far. You might want to think about feeding him less."

A faint smile touched her mouth. "I'm clear." A deep breath. "Keep him safe."

**Later**

Less than a day had passed before she was on an unidentified military plane headed for Edonia. She had Leon to thank for that. She was unable to sit still, pacing as much from fear as from tension. The doctors had given her fair warning about flying, especially this far, but she didn't care. Nothing else in the world mattered besides laying eyes on him. Touching him and making sure he was still alive, still warm under her fingers.

Last report had him in the hospital, stable, likely suffering from a serious concussion, not to mention the skull fracture. Oh, she was going to concuss him when she got a hold of him all right, if she could refrain from out right strangling him. This was _not_ how it was supposed to go down. When she got her hands on him, she was going to beat him senseless.

"_I should be going with you," there were tears in her eyes but she refused to let them fall. It wouldn't be fair to him. She tucked the sheet up under her chin and frowned. "You're not supposed to be going anymore." It was everything she had not to full blown pout about it since she couldn't fall apart. They'd already missed so much time together and every minute was precious. But she knew he was climbing the walls sitting at a desk all day._

_He smiled at her. "Routine recon, you know that. No worries. I've got this. I'll be home in a couple of weeks, tops. When I get back I'll give you your Christmas present." He'd been dropping hints about her present for a couple of months now and she wasn't sure if she was excited or dreading it. Chris had a habit of either knocking it out of the park or failing miserably at gift giving. But she always had to give him credit because he always put his heart in it. However, she still had no idea what she was supposed to do with the pink dress with ruffles on it he had bought her last year for her birthday. It was pink. With ruffles. Yeah._

_Her jaw set stubbornly. "I'm going with you." The look he gave her didn't need words. She knew she couldn't go. Damn her broken wrist. Damn the big fat cast that was on it. Everything in her screamed not to let it go but she knew she would hinder him and not help him if she went. "Fine, but I'll be in the comm center."_

_This time he didn't try. He could keep her from going, but he wouldn't prevent her from doing this. Instead he kissed her on the nose. "All right then. It will take us two days to get there. That means you have two days to figure out how you want to handle it. You can run it or you can be there for support. It's not like HQ will argue with you either way."_

_She still didn't look happy but she didn't argue. "When are you leaving?"_

_His grin was devious, a hand tugging at the sheet covering her. "Not for another 12 hours or so. I can probably make sure it's at least 24 hours." He kissed her quickly. "You have any ideas how to pass the time?"_

_Chris laughed as she pulled him into bed with her._

**27 December 2012**

Heart in her throat, she swallowed hard, staring at the empty bed.

"What happened?" She could barely get the words out. If the plane hadn't been grounded for two days because of a snow storm she would have been here. Hell the plane was probably still grounded. She'd had to jump a military cargo flight to make it here and it had probably caused some kind of international incident when she did it. Not that she gave a damn. Especially not now.

Piers looked at her. Anguish was on his face and he shook his head. "I don't know. He woke up a few hours ago and asked where he was. I told him. He looked confused, but I didn't..." His words stopped as he struggled with the events. "I didn't think anything of it. He asked about everyone and I told him. It was just us left." His head dropped. "He didn't say anything, just nodded. I left to get him something to eat, when I came back he was gone." His tormented brown eyes met hers. "I swear I was only gone for 10 minutes!"

The doctors had already told her that physically he was fine. Mostly. They confirmed the concussion he'd gotten, stating it was serious, but not critical. The skull fracture was not something to be ignored, but it wasn't going to kill him either.

Obviously they had missed something. Maybe a bleed in his brain or something. That had to be it. Chris would never just leave like that. She turned it over in her head for a few minutes, finally settling on a plan. There was no way she could look for him herself. Not now. The cast had come off a week ago, but with everything else... If it took every agent the BSAA had to find him, then she'd send every damn one of them.

"Bring my… you bring him _home_ solider." Her order was clear.

"Yes Ma'am." He turned to go, then paused and looked back at her. "Do you want me to tell him?"

"Absolutely not!" She shook her head vehemently. "Under no circumstances do you tell him." Before he could walk out the door, "That's an order."

He stopped but didn't turn this time. "I'm clear Director."

Jill Valentine collapsed into the chair and cursed fate.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: The characters are owned by Capcom, I'm just trying to fix their mess. Spoilers for rE6.

**25 January 2013**

"Well, it's not like I can stay here." She dropped her shoulder, brushing off the well meaning hand that had been there. "Even if they found him, I can't stay here." For a month now she had been in Edonia. Chris was gone and she needed to go home. Needed the resources she had there to find him.

They _would_ find him dammit. Jill wouldn't entertain any other thoughts. He was alive and okay dammit. She would know if he were dead.

The older doctor nodded and shoved his hands into the pockets of his lab coat. "I understand Ms. Valentine. But in your condition-"

An angry slice of her hand in the air cut him off. "My condition is fine." He looked like he wanted to argue but didn't.

The stress of the last month had almost killed her. Chris had dropped off the grid somehow. Completely. Totally. She'd already been to every single place she could think of. If he'd been in his right mind she'd have found him by now. Hell if he'd been in his right mind this never would have happened. Unfortunately the docs suspected some type of traumatic amnesia. It was likely he didn't even know his own name, let alone know the places he would normally go. Desperately, she was hoping he was operating under instinct because that was something she would be able to predict. Something she could count on.

In her hands she held Piers' latest report. It was Eyes Only for her alone. He'd been looking for his missing captain this last month.

_It's possible I missed him in Germany. Someone fitting his description had been seen in one of the local bars, but no one was willing to talk to me about it. Seems who ever it was had caused a lot of problems and nearly killed two men in a bar fight. Sounds like our boy._

_It's not clear how he would have even gotten here. He left everything he had with him at the hospital. We hadn't retrieved his belongings from the original holding facility yet. His wallet, ID and everything was left in the bag he brought with him when he left home. _

_The bartender did tell me that this man seemed very confused. Aside from the violence, he didn't seem to know where he was. Stated he always seemed "like he was lost." No names were ever mentioned and no one was even sure where he was staying. After the incident several patrons tried hunting him down, no doubt for revenge, but were unable to track him._

_I firmly believe I was close Director. I promise you, I will find him for you._

Blue-grey eyes closed and she took a deep breath. Piers had been close. Surely this couldn't last long. Right?

All other thoughts were shoved from her mind and she rushed to the bathroom and puked up what little she had in her stomach. Resting her head against the cool rim she prayed for his safe return. She couldn't live without him. Couldn't do this without him.

"Where are you Chris?" she whispered. "I need you with me."

**14 February 2013**

Jill gripped her cell tight and closed her eyes. "Thanks Claire." Another miss. The man was like smoke, disappearing with the wind every time they got close. Claire had lost him in the crowd in Spain. Or at least the person she thought was him.

In the last few weeks rumors had been circulating from all over about their lost man. He'd been spotted various places. Of course she used the word spotted loosely. None of the rumors had been confirmed completely. Some of them sounded likely, but a lot of them were obviously not him. Really, it shouldn't be so hard to find him should it? Then again maybe it was just in her mind that he stood out. His dark hair stood up all over the place, especially right out of bed or the shower. Medium brown eyes were always warm when they looked at her. He was tall, but he wasn't a giant. A small smile played on her lips. OK, he kind of was. But there had been enough information that she'd been able to dismiss some of the leads out right. She didn't have enough operatives to be able to follow every lead. They had to be cleaned out. However people were grumbling about all the resources she had placed on locating one single person. Let them try to stop her from doing it. She'd damn well bring the BSAA to their knees.

Right now she had Barry in Afghanistan of all places, though in all honesty she didn't think he was there. Claire was leaving Spain tomorrow. Sheva and Josh had been all over Africa tracking down leads for the last six weeks. Leon had sent a half dozen men to more locations than she could even remember. Her head was hurting with this. Piers had reported in with nothing new. She wanted to beat her head against the wall in frustration.

Her stomach took that moment to begin its heaves and she made a mad dash for the bathroom. At least she was home now. Being sick some place that wasn't home was always the worst. And that's exactly what was happening to Chris. He was very sick and far, far from home. When the worst had passed she rinsed her mouth and dropped onto their bed.

God she missed him. They hadn't spend more than a night apart until this since she'd been rescued. He'd spent every waking hour, and most of the sleeping hours, by her side. The process had been so slow, for both of them, but they'd pushed through.

Now this. Fate was a cruel bitch and Jill would have gladly strangled her right then.

With a heavy heart she fell asleep.

**28 February 2013**

"Happy Birthday Jill."

The brunette attempted a smile but failed miserably. "Thanks Barry."

The big man gave her a hug and she returned it. When he sat down she picked up her glass of ice water and sipped. She had never been more miserable. Chris was gone and her own body was fighting against her. Nausea was her constant companion now.

"You OK?"

"As well as can be expected." It was the most honest answer she could give him. Very few people had all of the details and she wanted to keep it that way.

Nodding, he reached for her hand and squeezed. "If he knew, nothing would keep him from being here."

"I know." She closed her eyes tight. "I think that scares me the most. He doesn't know and maybe he never will. Maybe he never remembers."

His laugh forced her eyes open. "I can guarantee you that if we can catch up with him you will be the only thing on his mind."

"You can't tell him Barry."

"I won't have to. You've kept him going more than once. I have a hard time believing this is any different. His brains may have gotten scrambled but you're in his heart. Always have been."


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: The characters are owned by Capcom, I'm just trying to fix their mess. Spoilers for RE6.

**10 March 2013**

_I had my hands on him! Bastard gave me a left hook and knocked me out. When I came to he was gone. But he was there! He was fine! At least physically he looked OK. His behavior is erratic and his drinking is out of hand. He's a man chasing demons with booze. But I don't think he knows what demons he's chasing._

_I don't mean to tell you how to do your job Ma'am, but I think we're going to need a team. The next time we get close we need to wait until we have people in place before trying to bring him in. I made a mistake. I assumed when he saw me he'd know me. Or at least know I wasn't one of the bad guys. If he did I couldn't tell. He has a wicked punch._

_I did find the place he had been staying. I'm still not sure how he's moving around. He had a half dozen passports with aliases on them. Where did he come up with the money for those? Does he have a stash somewhere? Is it possible he's starting to remember them? If so then we need to start staking out those places. He could easily return for more._

_You know him better than anyone else. What do you think?_

_There were also a few changes of clothes and a bunch of newspaper clippings. I think there are cracks forming in his amnesia. There was an article there from the Raccoon City incident. It was ripped in half but he obviously cut it out for a reason. There were also several articles about Umbrella._

_The article about you being made Director of the B.S.A.A was there, but there wasn't a picture. I wonder if that would have made him remember._

_There's no way he wouldn't remember you if he saw you. How are you feeling?_

**12 April 2013**

"The antibodies you carry in your system are the issue here I think." Rebecca looked at her friend.

"But everything else is fine?" Jill couldn't keep the worry out of her voice. The battery of tests had kept her at the hospital all day but no one had told her much of anything.

Rebecca's smile was reassuring. "Looks that way. At some point the blood transfusion you had was the wrong Rh factor. Normally it wouldn't be a problem for you, at least not the first time around on this, but it has triggered an immune response this time. Unfortunately there's no way for us to predict this for you. We are mostly doing a wait and see." She could tell she'd lost her friend with the medical line of talk. "Don't worry, I've got it covered." Valentine nodded, chewing her lower lip. "But I need you to rest. Low stress OK?"

"I'll rest when Chris is home." She took a shuddering breath. "I'm starting to think he's never going to make it home."

"Don't say that," the tone was sharp. "He's coming back. You have to believe that."

"I keep telling myself that." Jill wrapped her arms around her middle. "Trouble is brewing again in the area. We're getting rumors of bio-terrorist attacks in the works. Claire passed along some details that Terra Save came across that we hadn't yet. We've got to get him out of there before it all falls apart."

**30 April 2013**

Running a hand through his hair he sighed. The familiar feeling of failure flooded his limbs and he dropped into the nearest chair. The wooden stool looked like it would barely hold him, but he didn't care. The search had gone on so much longer than he ever thought it would. Initially he figured maybe a week, at the outside, to drag Chris back home where he belonged.

Piers scrubbed his face with his hands. Another dead end. Another hole in the wall his Captain had obviously been, but he had no idea _when_ it might have been for sure. Stories always brought them here, and most of them added up. The Director had a way of weeding out the bullshit from the stuff that had some potential to be real. Of course, since she knew him best there was probably a reason for that.

His thoughts slipped to Jill. Rumors around the BSAA were that she wasn't in good shape. No one was sure if it was simply her current condition, or if Chris' disappearance had simply been too much to take. Then again there were some who thought she should never haven been promoted to Director. He'd punch any of them in the mouth if he ever heard such a thing being said himself. There wasn't anyone else he'd rather have as their leader, except maybe Redfield himself. Of course with his tempter, the Captain probably wasn't the best choice.

Piers understood though, that eventually both of them would have to stand down. They both deserved a life outside of this mess. Selfishly though, he hoped he never saw it during his service. No one would ever lead them better.

Shoving himself out of the rickety chair he stood and surveyed the room. The bed was disheveled as if the person who had slept in it had been more than restless. As if demons haunted his sleep. The table and two chairs that served as some kind of dinette looked like they'd fall apart in a slight breeze. The table top itself was scattered with papers and newspaper clippings like in the previous two places he'd found. This one also contained maps. Pulling them close, Piers tried to make some sense out of it. Some of them appeared to be coming from a mad man, but some of them were obviously tactical vantage points, and some rang a bell in the back of his mind.

Ever so slowly he started to piece it together as he rummaged through it all. They were former Umbrella sites. One or two didn't sound familiar and he wondered if they were confirmed sites. Or maybe suspected? It was also possible they were Tricell sites. In the end, it made sense. Chris was falling apart but his life as a solider was so ingrained in him it was struggling to free itself. The struggle he'd been fighting for so many years wasn't something he could forget even if he couldn't understand it.

No wonder he was drinking like a fish. Piers wished he had the same luxury.

Rummaging through the paperwork, he hand met something new. Grasping it, he pulled it free and blinked. It looked suspiciously like a leather bound journal. He began to flip through it, bits and pieces of Chris' neatly printed thoughts echoing in his head.

_I feel like I'm going crazy. I keep seeing things, hearing sounds in my mind. But these aren't people I know. I don't think. Do I?_

_I feel the rage and guilt inside of me but I can't remember where it came from. I think it might have to do with the people I keep seeing. Men. Some kind of military action maybe. I don't know how I know this, but I can tell you what weapon each of them are carrying. Can tell you tactical advantages to every place I see. Can tell you the fastest way to kill someone. Living or nonliving. Non living? What the hell would need to be killed that wasn't living? Can you even kill something that isn't alive?_

_The one face I see the most. She had blue eyes. And when she smiles I know I'm home. But I don't know who she is..._

"Jesus," breathed Piers. He needed to see if there was anything else here. Then he needed to box it all up and send it to the Director. Maybe she could find the pattern here. He prayed she could find it.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: The characters are owned by Capcom, I'm just trying to fix their mess. Spoilers for RE6.

**01 May 2013**

Ripping open the box she nearly lost a finger to the small knife she used to get the tape open. Her hands were shaking and she was honestly scared of what she might find in here. Piers said he sent back everything he could get his hands on that was left in the room. He warned her some of it sounded like rantings and ravings but some of it made an odd sort of sense. It was his hope that she would be able to figure out what Chris was doing, what his objective was besides being off the radar. Dropping into the corner of the couch she preferred, she took a deep breath and opened the flaps on the box.

None of it had been packed in any particular order and once she started pulling items out she decided she needed more room. Working herself off the couch, she shoved the heavy storage ottoman to the far side of the living room and winced. They would all be yelling at her if they knew she was moving furniture, let alone by herself. With that in mind she decided to leave the love seat and couch where they were.

Sitting in the middle of the floor so she had room to spread everything around her, she started sorting. First she spread out the maps in front of her, trying to put them in some kind of order, but she didn't see anything to use as a deciding factor on any kind of sequence. She did take note of the fact several of the locations marked were Umbrella sites. Spencer's estate was marked and she felt her heart stop when she read the angry crimson scrawl. _What the hell happened here?_ It was Chris' print, but it was wrong somehow. It was harsh, slanted at a strange angle. The anger building inside of him showed in those four words, the letters dug into the paper with bright red marker and the area circled numerous times.

Tears burned in her eyes. With a shuddering breath she told herself to stop. She didn't have time to fall apart. The weeks had turned into months and Chris was still out there somewhere. This mess could provide a clue to where he might be and if anyone could decipher it, it was her. Briefly she thought of giving Claire a call then decided against it. Once she had things sorted and had some vague idea what she was looking at or looking for, then she'd give his sister a call. Right now Claire was busy tracking down a lead on the new rumors that were popping up left and right. Something big was coming and she needed to get Chris home before it happened.

Finally deciding to just empty the box and start from there, Jill piled the dozen or so maps she'd dug out so far in one pile, then began digging individual sheets of papers out. Initially she tried sorting them into some kind of order... reports and the like in one pile, things written in code in another, until her eyes started to blur with the sheer volume. Giving up, she just starting putting things into piles by type... loose paper, newspaper clippings, maps, misc items. Finally the box was empty aside from a small lump that was wrapped in what looked like a shemagh. She recognized it as the one Piers usually wore around his neck.

Snatching it out of the bottom of the box, she unwrapped the rectangle shape quickly letting the cotton cloth fall to her lap. The worn brown leather felt smooth in her hands. Flipping through it from the beginning, she noted that the writing started off in Chris' neat print, the letters precise and uniform. You'd have thought he learned to write in the military with the way his handwriting looked. The thought made her smile. As the pages fell the writing became more and more disheveled, the letters more like a mad scrawl than his usual precision with bits of it written normally. The last page was dated three days before Piers had found his hideout.

_27 April 2013_

_ I'm not sure what's going on anymore. The faces and voices I keep hearing can't possibly belong to anyone. Maybe I'm just crazy. Maybe I was in that hospital because I needed to be locked up. Vodka doesn't kill them, only mutes them sometimes. But they're always there when I'm asleep. And I know I've failed them. I know it's my fault they're not here, BUT I DON'T KNOW WHY!_

_ Her face is there every time I close my eyes. I know she was real at some point. Just like I know I failed her too. But I don't think it was at the same time. She's gone now though, of that I'm sure. If she were here, I'd know who I am. Know what the hell is wrong with me. But she's not and I think she might be dead, just like the others._

_ I woke up wearing a watch. I guess they didn't take it off if me at the hospital for some reason. It has an inscription. _Always My Hero. Love Jill. _Is Jill's face the one I keep seeing?_

The agony in his words tore at her heart. He was obviously coming apart and he couldn't understand why. There was nothing for him to hold on to, to make sense out of. No wonder he was so volatile, lashing out. Many people had told her he had been in bad shape after she had taken that dive out the window with Wesker, but very few were willing to tell her just how bad it had been. Barry was the one who had spelled it out for her when she was well enough to hear it on her return.

He had melted down completely. Only his normal use of iron control had kept him from simply giving up on life. That and his hope she was still alive. No body meant she wasn't dead as far as he was concerned. When he'd started investigating, once he'd picked himself up off the bottom of his whiskey bottle, no one dared to deny him for fear he'd fall right back into that bottle and never come out again. But just as everyone was starting to think they needed to explain to him she truly was gone forever, he'd gotten reliable intel that she was alive. Or reliable enough for him to go across the world. The race was on then. And it had taken him time to find her, but he had. He'd found her and brought her home.

Now it was her turn. Snatching her phone off the floor from where it rested beside her, she hit a speed dial and waited.

His voice was sleepy when it answered and she wondered briefly what time zone he was currently in. Not that it would have stopped her one way or another. "Yeah?"

"I need to be over there looking. The BSAA is not going to clear me for that, I know it. I need you to get me a flight. He's somewhere in the Eastern Block. I don't care where the damn thing lands, just get me there."

Silence. For a second she wondered if he'd fallen back asleep. Finally he cleared his throat and she imagined him propping himself up on an elbow. "Jill? Do you really think you need to be going anywhere in your condition?"

It took sheer will not to throw the phone across the room. If she heard about her damn _condition_ one more time she was going to punch someone. "Leon..." there was a warning in her tone that he didn't like. "I can't just sit here anymore. Every time they get close to him he feels it and he leaves."

"I know that, but -"

His reply was cut off without an apology. "No Buts Leon. I need to get over there. Maybe if he sees me..."

"Maybe if he sees you he goes berserk and kills you." The voice was bland, dry, but it hit home. "If he's not letting anyone else close to him what makes you think he will let you near him."

The hand holding the journal trembled. "He remembers me. Or at least he remembers my face. He left a journal in the last place. Something spooked him and he ran. The first date in it was just a day after he disappeared." A soft smile touched her lips as she remembered how much crap the other S.T.A.R.S. members had given him for keeping a "diary". She knew full well Chris was often the type to work through whatever was in his head by writing it down. Not one to express his emotions or talk to someone about what he was thinking, he wrote it down. Claire once said it started not long after their parents had died and reasoned he was trying to deal with his loss without dumping it on his also grieving sister.

Leon sighed into the phone and she heard what she assumed was a lamp being turned on. She could hear him shuffling around and a quiet voice close to him. Raising a brow she resisted the urge to say anything about it. He wasn't about to tell her anything anyway. That's just the way he was. The boy really didn't kiss and tell.

"Look Jill, I can't send you over there." He overrode her protest, cutting her off. "Not in your condition. If you _did_ manage to find him, he'd kill me when he found out how you got over there." More rustling and the voice again, muffled so that Jill couldn't tell what was being said, but it sure as hell sounded female. "I'm not done yet," he told her when she tried to interrupt again. "I didn't say I wouldn't take care of it. Just that there's no way in hell you're going." Silently she mouthed curses him. "And stop swearing at me. It won't help." Her mouth snapped shut with an audible sound. "I've been trying to get a team together for this anyway. I'll push it up a bit. Make it a top priority." There was the unmistakable sound of a loaded magazine snapping home. "When we find him again we'll take some time to assess the situation, see what we're really dealing with. Your boys are probably rushing it a bit. Over excited and worried about their Captain. I get it Jill, I do. But if he's anywhere near as fucked up as he was when you were gone, this is going to take some finesse."

"Fine," The word was short, sharp.

Leon chose to ignore it. He knew she wouldn't be happy about the situation but there wasn't any way in hell he was letting her go over there. Not now, not like this. If she were the last operative on Earth that could retrieve Chris Redfield, then Chris would have a long wait. "Two days, tops, I'll have them in the air."

"Two?"

"You want it done right or quick?"

"Both," was her honest answer. "I want it done yesterday."

"Two days Jill. We will bring him home. I promise you. Let Piers know my team will be heading to him. Make sure he knows we're all in this for the same thing." She made a sound of agreement. "What makes you think he's in the Eastern Block?"

"I don't know," she started, then paused. Her eyes scanned the piles she had created, then she the hit the speaker button on her phone and dropped it to the floor. On hands and knees she scrambled, rustling through the debris, scattering the neat little piles. Mind racing, hands skimming paper of all kinds, she tried to get those parts of her body to catch up to each other. "Hold on," she told the phone, "I think I've got something." Reaching the maps, she opened the top two, then tossed them aside. Not what she was looking for. Another couple were tossed aside until she found it. Three maps were placed side by side and her eyes darted over them.

"Leon, I'm looking through all the stuff Piers sent from his last hideout. There's a bunch of maps in here and they're from all over. It looks like he's marked a lot of old Umbrella facilities and a few that were always suspected. I think the rest of these are probably Tricell, but without being at my computer at the office I can't confirm that." Blue eyes scanned the spots he'd marked, sifting them through the files her brain had been keeping on Umbrella for over a decade. He's looking for something but I don't think he even knows what it is to be honest. Not judging but what little bit I've had time to look through." A slim finger ran down a few drawn lines. "He's circling, going around..." Her breath caught. "I think he's going to circle back to Edonia Leon. I can't tell you when, but I think that's where he's going to end up." A shiver of excitement slid down her spine.

The tension in the other man leaked across the phone to her. "Are you sure?"

"As sure as I can be with anything he does right now." She hoped like hell she was right. "I've still got paperwork and a journal here to go through. By the time you get your men ready I'll have made it through this mess. I'll let you know what I find." Here it was. The instinct taking over, just like she'd hoped. If he'd found something in Edonia, he'd go back. Try to figure out what led to him ending up in the hospital in the first place. Just before they'd gone out on that last mission he'd sent her an email telling her they'd found something and he wanted to follow up on it. Jill had been tied up in a meeting and hadn't been able to see his message until they had already gone.

"All right." He took a quick breath and let it out. "We'll bring him home Jill. You need to rest."

"Don't tell me to rest while he's still out there Leon!"

"OK, OK, fine. But I want you to take it easy."

Jill ground her teeth together. "I"m trying. But the shit is about to hit the fan over there Leon. And don't tell me it's not. We're both getting the exact same intel on this one. We have to get him out of there. He doesn't know what he's up against over there. Umbrella..." Her voice dropped. "He was only supposed to be doing recon. Why did this happen to him?"

"I don't know honey," the agent's voice was gentle. "But it's done and all we can do is get him back."

"I know."

"Two days Jill. Two days and we will track him down."

They hung up and Jill hugged the journal to her chest. Maybe there was something in there that would give her more information, give her a clue as to what was going on in his head. Praying like she had never prayed before in her life, she hoped his instincts were still there, still leading him. Because then they'd have him.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: The characters are owned by Capcom, I'm just trying to fix their mess. Spoilers for RE6.

**23 May 2013**

"He's in the city."

Those simple words were music to her ears and balm to soothe her raw heart. "You're sure?"

"Positive. Laid eyes on him myself," Piers assured her. "Almost stumbled over him by accident."

"All right. I'll let Leon know."

"Ma'am, I don't know where he went. I had to retreat before he saw me and I lost him." As much as it paiend him to admit, he couldn't lie about it.

Jill felt her stomach clench. "That's OK I don't think he's going to go far. He's going back to the beginning. Where it all started."

Voice nervous, Piers spoke again. "He's in bad shape." His Captain had been staggering drunk, barely able to keep himself from bouncing off the walls as he walked. One would think losing someone in that condition would be next to impossible, but it had happened. Nivans wasn't sure how exactly, just that he'd ducked into the closest alley and when he stepped out a few seconds later Chris was gone. From the brief glimpse he'd gotten he could tell the entire thing had taken its toll on Chris. The man looked haggard, worn down. He'd also been sloppily armed. A knife that was usually unseen showing out of his boot. That wasn't like Redfield. Not at all. Piers supposed he should be happy Chris didn't seem to be carrying a gun. God only knew what he'd do with it.

"He's either going to melt down or self destruct soon," Jill agreed. Brushing her hair out of her eyes she studied the latest intel they had on the area. "I assume there was a bar in the area?"

"Several. I asked around but our boy doesn't seem to hit the same one very often. Then again, we don't know exactly how long he's been here. The one he was at today didn't recognize him from the last few weeks." He'd done his homework. Unfortunately it was mostly dead ends. "How do you want me to proceed?"

Closing her eyes she thought about it a half a minute. As much as she wanted him out of there Leon had been right. It was going to require finesse. "Hold. See if you can sniff out where he's staying, or at least where he's spending the majority of his time. Then just watch him. If your other experiences with him are going to be par for the course then we really are going to need a team for this. Leon will have his men in the area quickly and I will have some of ours there tomorrow. Now that we now for sure where he is the BSAA can't argue about resources." As much as she didn't want to admit it, this was not going to be easy. Hot spots had popped up all over the world. Resources were thin as it was. Agents were being recalled from vacations and other leave. "He may not come out willingly. We're going to have to be prepared to extract him as hostile."

"Ma'am, if you don't mind saying so, I really wish you could be here for this."

Jill smiled, the hand that had been rubbing her aching back going still. "Thanks Piers. Me too." A chuckle escaped her lips. "Of course that might be more shock than he could handle."

Piers laughed softly. "Maybe. But he's going to be so happy when he realizes..."

"I hope so." Worried, she shook her head even though no one could see her. "We never thought..." she trailed off. They had actually tried to make sure it didn't happen. For a lot of reasons. A large bit of it due to the fact they had no way of knowing how her body would react. They'd been right to be worried.

"I understand." The soldier's voice was gentle but insistent. "I know the Captain. As soon as he knows you're OK he's going to be on the moon."

"Thanks Piers. Remind me I owe you dinner when this is all over."

"Absolutely Ma'am. Looking forward to it." His comm went silent and she leaned back in her chair. She should go home but she was too damn restless to sit around the house by herself. Claire had been there the week before and Jill realized just how much she missed having someone else around. Even if it wasn't the right Redfield. His sister had helped get things ready. Her boy would be coming home soon.

**10 June 2013**

Rebecca smiled at her friend. "Everything looks good. All your blood work has come back normal this time. The blood transfusion Wesker gave you that must have been the wrong Rh factor completely messed things up, but it looks like we've managed to control the reaction." What she didn't add was the agonizing pain that would have happened during the initial reaction would have made her beg for death. There was a reason blood was so carefully typed and matched. Somehow she highly doubted Wesker had made a mistake. Jill's blood type had been on file further back than her STARS days. She also suspected it had been more than one wrong transfusion. Chambers hoped like hell much of it had been done during her period in cryostasis when she wouldn't have known what was happening.

Jill felt relief sweeping though her. "You're sure?"

"I'm sure." The smaller girl swept her bangs out of her eyes. "You body adapts well and quickly. I know it didn't seem quickly to you, but trust me, it really was. All things considered." A mischievous grin spread across her face. "Do you want to know yet?"

Laughing Jill shook her head. "I already know."

"How?!"

"I've always known. But if it makes you feel better you can tell me anyway."

**11 June 2013**

"What the hell do you mean Leon?" She couldn't handle any more delays. Not now.

"The BSAA is pulling their men. We were told they were all needed on the ground in China right now. Piers is the only one left in the area."

Her colorful swearing was enough to make him blush. And be incredibly thankful he would not be on the receiving end of her wrath. However when she got silent that's when he really got worried.

"Jill?"

"I'll deal with this." The words were tight, filled with fury. "Are your people ready to go?"

Part of him wanted to be a fly on the wall when she did it and part of him wanted to duck and cover. "They're ready when you tell me to go with it." He grinned into the phone, trying hard not to enjoy the thought and failing. "Loaded with enough tranqs to take down a bull."

"I hope to hell we don't need them," she muttered. Her back was aching again and she had her swollen feet propped up on a chair. This had to end soon or she was going to loose her mind. "I should be there."

"No," he answered sharply. Kennedy wasn't even going to entertain that notion. "You need to be right where you are. Safe and sound." Since he wasn't within striking distance he went for it. "How far or fast do you think you could possibly run right now?'

She snorted. "I just have to out run you."

He was laughing as he hung up the phone.

**22 June 2013**

"I'm sorry Jill, I don't have a choice." His voice was rough and she could hear the incoming aircraft overhead. "We've got it set up though. I'm not leaving this up in the air." There was a muffled voice she could barely hear and he answered in a low tone. "As soon as I hit the ground I'll call."

She squeezed her eyes closed and took a deep breath. "I understand. You have obligations too." The high she'd been riding on for a few days knowing the time was coming crashed in a fiery ball of disappointment. It had taken them more time than she was happy with to establish his pattern and have a hope in hell of catching him somewhere they could cover adequately. "Have a safe trip."

"I've got it covered Jill. I promise. Piers and I put a plan in place. It doesn't change when I leave." Leon sounded frustrated. She understood, she was feeling it too. "They will be able to get in touch with me if they need to. My men have their orders." He paused a moment. "Piers and I agreed they should be the ones to step in if the need arises. I don't want your men giving slack because of who he is."

Her first instinct was to protest, but Jill knew he was right. "I don't like it, but I understand what you're saying. Nivans was OK with that?" Piers had always been protective of his Captain.

"He was, as long as he was the one who made contact." The sound of a Blackhawk's rotors nearly drown out his voice. "I think he's right. He needs to make contact, see if he can get through. But if Chris needs to be taken down my men will handle it." Before she could even say it he added, "As gently as possible."

Pacing, she made a circuit through their bedroom, fingers trailing across some of his things, across pictures of them together. Going to the walk in closet she stepped into his side and took a deep breath, smelling his scent that still clung to the clothes there. "He's coming home isn't he?" She couldn't keep the tremor out of her voice.

"He's coming home," Leon confirmed. "One way or another, he's coming home Jill. Piers and I will see to it."

"Thanks Leon. Have a safe flight."


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: The characters are owned by Capcom, I'm just trying to fix their mess. Spoilers for RE6.

**29 June 2013**

"It's go time Director." Piers' voice was tinny in her ear and she waited for the comm link to drop. It would be just her luck the damn thing would drop out at this critical moment. It was about to go down.

Information had major shit hitting the fan within a few days and Jill was desperate to pull Chris. Even if it meant knocking him out until he could get stateside. Leon needing to leave had put a stumbling block in their path but they had recovered. However new intel told them a massive bioterrorism attack was about to happen. With his amnesia Chris wouldn't be of any use to them, and would in fact likely slow them down, maybe get them killed. If that happened she didn't know if he would ever recover. Since she hadn't gotten a chance to talk to him before he disappeared, she had no way of knowing why this one had hit him so hard.

If she had to guess, she suspected the death of Finn Macauley was what did it. The rookie of the group had barely been legal to drink and so eager to join. They'd had discussions about whether or not he was ready. Chris had wanted him to sit it out, but she'd disagreed. She told him if it was just a recon mission then that was a good place for him to be. Redfield had relented. It was her fault Finn had been there. So she had been the one to notify and sit with his family.

"I'm here Piers. Are you ready?'

"I think so Ma'am. I really wish you were here right now." There was a note of humor in his voice. "Somehow I doubt he'd take a swing at you."

Jill chuckled. "You have my permission to take him down if he takes a swing at you Nivans." Piers would probably be a bit surprised to know how often they'd beat each other up during sparring matches. "I just want him home."

"Understood Director. He's not getting away from us this time."

"OK Lieutenant. You have your orders. This operation is under the direction of HQ. But I'm here."

"Are you sure you don't want to run it?"

"I'm too emotionally involved. This belongs to HQ." The words damn near killed her to say, but she had to be honest with herself. In all likelihood her emotions would get the better of her if she tried to run the op.

"Clear." There was a burst of static, then his quiet voice, "He's here."

The man in question had stumbled in, shambling up to the bar and sitting heavily on the bar stool. He slumped forward onto the bar and pulled out a pack of cigarettes.

Waiting was the hardest thing Piers ever did. He was rarely good at it and this time was no exception. Even when he was waiting for a target, he had to fight the urge to fidget. The small bud in his ear was buzzing. HQ giving orders. DSO chatter for the agents standing by outside. It was finally decided between himself and Agent Kennedy that the BSAA needed to be the ones to make contact. Because he was the one here who knew the Captain the best, Piers was to make the initial contact. He was going to only have a few minutes to convince Chris to come in and he hoped it would go smoothly. If not the DSO would step in to subdue Redfield. The man was going to be livid when he woke up if it came down to that option, but it was starting to look like it could be the option they'd have to use. Piers was somewhat surprised Chris had returned to this place. Only two days before he'd roughed up a bartender and left him nursing a broken arm. Hell, he was surprised they let him into the bar. Money talked he supposed.

There were three bars total in the area and Chris had been making time between all of them. His pattern of not staying in the same place long was falling apart as the man himself did the same. Some days it didn't look like he even managed to drag himself out of bed. For the last two weeks they'd had eyes on him at all times. It had taken that long to form some idea of what pattern he was following and to come up with a plan that had the fewest possible ways to go very badly. He and Leon had built and tore down plan after plan, poking holes in them together, often times disagreeing. Chris was so volatile that every precaution had to be taken.

Logistically it was a hell of a lot harder than it sounded. They'd ended up renting out the bar they were in for the safety of the civilians if nothing else. A few civvies were still present because they'd been trying not to cause a ruckus and a couple had complained, but it was mostly filled with BSAA agents. They'd given the bartender a good chunk of change to stay. She owned the place and wasn't wiling to let another of her employees be in the line of fire. Her service and bar hadn't come cheap, but Jill had authorized whatever amount it took to make it happen.

Piers waited. It made him want to chew through the bar but they had to make sure the area was secure before they proceeded. This included clearing the general area as well and they certainly couldn't do that ahead of time else the Captain would know something was wrong. In order to pass the time, and to keep himself from looking suspicious, he went ahead and ordered a steak all the while listening to the chatter over the air with half an ear.

Tension sang through him as the steak was placed in front of him and he tried to not let it show. But he could feel it, snaking out through the room as they all tried to prepare themselves for what might happen. Not a damn one of them wanted to see their leader like this and it was more sobering than any BOW they had faced. Redfield had always seemed invincible. Like nothing could happen to him. But obviously that had been a lie they told themselves. That fantasy had been stripped roughly away and every last one of them felt it.

"Another round." Chris' voice was rough, not himself. There was no trace of warmth in it. The bartender shot him a look and moved off, no doubt hoping they'd remove him from the premises quickly. Piers couldn't blame her one bit.

Stomach rolling, Piers cut into the steak and tried to decide how to handle it. "Hard to find a good steak around here. Not like back home."

Chris scowled at him, but Piers thought he saw a spark of something, like his alcohol addled brain was trying to process a specific thought. The bartender picked then to pour a small bit of vodka back into his glass.

It was enough to piss off the Captain. "Fill her up." His voice was heavily slurred and Piers had to wonder how much he'd already had to drink. Or if he'd stopped drinking any time in the last few weeks. Maybe only when he was asleep.

"You've had enough." Her voice was soft, the accent kind of nice, Piers thought.

Scoffing, his reply was dry, sarcastic. "Listen sweetheart," Chris pulled the bottle from her hand which earned him a dirty look he didn't even seem to notice, "you're here to pour drinks and look pretty, so how bout you shut your mouth?" He filled the glass to the rim but didn't get the chance to drink it.

Alcohol hit is face and he didn't even flinch. "How about you get the hell out of my bar." Obviously their rental agreement was out the window.

Holding the bottle, the big man pushed away from the bar. "Nowhere to go."

Looking at him, Piers felt his jaw tighten but he held himself in check. He hated seeing his idol like this. Hated seeing this side of him that before now Piers would have never imagined existed. Chris Redfield was a mean drunk. An unhappy man who was willing to make the world pay for it. The tension had reached critical levels and he knew something was about to happen. He only hoped both teams were ready. It was now or never.

The other man stepped into Chris' path, speaking a language Piers didn't know, but could guess. To his credit, Chris tried to push past, purposefully bumping into the man as he went. Realizing Chris didn't understand either, he then repeated himself in English. "I said she asked you to leave."

It was on. Spinning, the BSAA leader slammed the man onto the table, twirling and raising the bottle above his head to retaliate. No doubt ready to deal a deadly blow.

The hand that stopped him was enough to get his attention and the anger that came off him was nearly lethal. It was disgusting and made the younger man's stomach churn. "Never thought I'd find Chris Redfield wasting away in a shithole like this."

Jerking himself out of the younger man's grasp, Chris stumbled back, nearly falling over. His brain couldn't make sense of the words, like they were being spoken underwater. But he heard his name for the first time in months and it was enough to make him stop. He recognized his own name. Teetering, he dropped into a wooden chair heavily. "Who the hell are you?"

Hoping maybe this would go easily Piers sat. "Piers. Piers Nivans."

Shaking his head, the older man waved a hand at him dismissively. "Never heard of you."

Feeling his anger rise, the second in command tried to push it back, but it was threatening to get the better of him. If he didn't know all the reasons Chris needed to go home he would be sorely tempted to beat the man even more senseless for good measure. There was no way he was facing the Director's wrath for that. Instead he pulled the PDA from his pocket and tapped the screen, pulling up the files. "How about this? You heard of this?"

"What is that?" Obviously it didn't even look familiar to him.

"You really don't remember anything do you?" Piers kept pushing even as Chris shook his head. "Bioterrorism."

"Bio..." He knew the instant the barrier in the other man's brain started to crumble. With a grunt of pain Chris touched his head.

The walls were collapsing fast and he pushed forward. Even though he knew he was causing pain he just didn't have time to be gentle. Not now. "You can't hide from your past Chris, no matter where you go or what you do."

"Who are you? What is this?"

"OK You don't remember me?" He knew it was cruel, maybe too much, but in a flash of anger he couldn't stop himself. He pulled the files up and flashed the screen at the other man. "How about them?" Chris wouldn't meet his eyes, wouldn't look at what was in front of him. "Look!" he shouted, slamming a hand down on the table top as he rose, shoving the screen in Redfield's face. "I said look! Those were your men! Men who died under your command! You owe it to them to remember Chris! If you walk away now then this was all for nothing!"

"Enough!" The larger man swept his arm out, knocking Piers' away. He was obviously in pain, letting out a sound and reaching for his head.

Frustration took the fight out of him. Somehow he'd held out hope in his heart that once confronted, Chris would be back to himself. But life was never that easy. "Dammit. Six months of searching for you," he knocked the beer bottle over, "and this is what I find!" So badly he wanted to tell Chris, to say Jill's name. If anything could bring him out of this, it was her memory. But he had orders to do no such thing. More importantly though, he'd promised.

"BSAA..." The tone indicated he was remembering.

Sitting up straighter he felt that piece of hope in his heart again. "Yeah. It's where you belong. Everyone's waiting." Silently he willed his Captain to remember. To understand.

"Everyone?" He was still obviously confused but he couldn't stop the remembering process now.

Piers gave a nod and a dozen men rose to their feet. Chris looked up, surprised and unsure. "We're taking you back Captain." He was leaving no room for argument here. He had his orders, not to mention promises to keep. "One way or another."

Chris nodded slowly and his second in command felt an overwhelming relief. He regarded the lost man for a moment then rose. After a brief hesitation Chris rose as well and gave him a slight nod.

It was time.

* * *

Escaping to her office, her knees weak with relief, Jill sat at her desk, dropping into the leather office chair heavily, unable to keep herself standing. Her hands were shaking and tears burned the backs of her eyes. She squeezed them tightly shut not willing to let them fall. Not yet. They weren't home yet. Hell they weren't even on the bird yet. But he was in custody, and that was enough for now. Piers had handled it well.

A soft knock on her door brought her head up and she blinked, clearing away the extra moisture in her eyes. "Yes?"

"Director Valentine?" The young agent stuck her head around the door but didn't enter. Jill knew it was bad by the body language alone. "We have a situation. We need you back in MTAC."

"What situation?" Rising, she smoothed her slacks and straightened her shirt. They were fitting tighter than she was happy with. _Please God, don't let it be Chris. I'm begging you._

"There's a situation in China. Two of them." The agent pushed the door open more to allow Jill to exit. "They're sending Nivans' unit to Waiyip Director."

"But, we can't. Chris is with them."

The young woman shook her head, blonde pony tail moving with it. Her brown eyes took in Jill's face and the older woman saw a flash of sympathy. "They said they don't have a choice. There's another outbreak. And they have hostages. It looks like the rumors we heard are now happening."

"I see." The heels of her boots clicked down the hall and Jill felt the knot of tension inside of her. "We already have a unit enroute to China."

"Yes Ma'am, but they're needed in Langshiang. We have multiple outbreaks at this time and reports of more potential sites."

Stopping, she looked at the young blonde and frowned. "Multiple?" But the young agent didn't have time to answer because Jill's phone rang. Sliding it open she answered. "Valentine."

"We have a situation Jill." Leon's voice was unsteady and that alone rocked her. "The President is dead. I killed him."

"I'm listening." Picking up the pace she raced for the MTAC room.

.

.

"We don't have time for this." He was right, but she didn't have to like it. And it wasn't like he hadn't run multiple ops prior to this. In fact, he'd run a good number of ops for Chris.

Jill gritted her teeth but nodded. "Fine. I'll run the Langshiang op." No one missed the unspoken _But you'd better get him out of there alive and in one piece or else. _"But he should not be out there in his condition and you damn well know that. In fact, he could easily be a liability to the other members of that team. He is not in a position mentally to be involved in this op, let alone leading it. Any deaths that happen on this are yours, not his." Her eyes flashed fire and more than one person took a step back. "Do I make myself clear?"

There was a short nod in acknowledgment. "Yes Director. I wish we had another option."

"There are always other options." Unfortunately there wasn't time to argue about it. Turning, she settled in behind one of the consoles and started bringing the things up she needed for the op. Quietly, she spoke into her comm link. "Lieutenant, be advised this is a secured communication. I understand you are not in a position to respond so just listen. They are sending you to China. We have two outbreaks in the area and we don't have time to scramble a new team. If at _any_ point you feel your package cannot maintain integrity, you let me know. I will not be running your op, but this connection will remain secure should you need it. Your mission has not changed, I repeat it has not changed. BOWs are your secondary mission. Your first is returning the package. Check in when you can. Do you copy?"

"Copy that Director." Nivans' voice was tight and she didn't want to know what was happening at that moment. He didn't have to tell her he didn't agree with what had just happened, she could feel it over the line. "Don't worry. I've got him."

Jill had never fully understood, until now, how Chris had been willing to sacrifice millions of lives while they were in Africa. Millions of lives for hers. But he had. And now she got it. Now she was willing to sacrifice as many people and continents as it took to get him home. And if someone didn't like it or thought she was wrong, they could go to hell. She had been a good soldier her entire life and now she wanted her reward. Chris was that reward. Chris was her reason for moving forward, for not sliding back into the darkness Wesker had put her in. Always Chris. And now they both had more than each other to live for.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: The characters are owned by Capcom, I'm just trying to fix their mess. Spoilers for RE6.

**30 June 2013**

She had gotten short communications from the field. Most of them aimed at her PDA instead of her comm. The majority of it was Piers assuring her they were fine. He seemed a little surprised that the training had taken over and Chris seemed to be at least functioning. Perhaps not as well as he might have, but well enough that Piers had stepped down as Alpha leader. Then again the kid had never been comfortable in that role anyway. Maybe if they'd given him team leader of another unit he'd have been OK, but not Alpha. Not Chris' unit.

Her PDA chirped and she slid it open, still listening to the op going down on her side, able to split her attention when the need arose.

_He's been trained well and it shows Ma'am. He seems to be remembering slowly, bits and pieces if I had to guess. It's causing him pain, but he hasn't complained. However, you need to know that he's not... stable. He's reckless, rushing forward into things he never would have before. It's like he has a death wish, like he thinks he has nothing left to offer. I never knew how he could have fallen like he did. So far down. Now I know. He's forgotten all the reasons he has fought this war for so long. He's going to need so much help when he arrives home. I just don't want you to be disappointed in him. _

Pressing her eyes tightly closed Jill took a shuddering breath. Earlier she had seen them scrambling on that side of the room and knew the op wasn't going as planned but she had no way of knowing the hows or whys of it. She kept telling herself it was better that way, and her head knew it, but her heart felt like it was being ripped out of her chest, bit by bit, it tiny pieces.

Someone put a hand on her shoulder and she turned, ready to tell whoever it was she didn't have time. But she met Clarie's eyes and couldn't help but smile. Only offering a slight nod to his sister, Jill went back to focusing on her own men out there. Claire's arm wrapped around her shoulders and squeezed tightly but she didn't say anything. She was here for the duration as well now.

It felt like days but Jill knew it was only hours. It seemed like the whole world had gone to shit and there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it. Hunnigan had contacted her to let her know to ignore reports that were filtering in. The woman wouldn't give any details, and Jill couldn't blame her, just stated the assets were fine. The Director understood the other woman couldn't say much and knew exactly what she was being told. Reports of Leon's death were to be ignored. Later she would get all the details, but she didn't have time to even let it be more than a flicker of thought across her brain.

When her PDA chirped again she hesitated to look, dreading what it might tell her.

_He is so blinded by vengeance right now that he has lost sight of everything else. And it has cost us more men. I don't even know where to begin. I don't know how to stop him or keep him from getting himself killed. I have never seen him like this Director Valentine. I swear to you I will do everything in my power to bring him home alive. I'm begging you, please let me tell him. I feel if he has you, if he has something to hang on to, then he will let go of some of this hatred. I have never in my time with him not trusted his judgment. Until now._

Claire perked up, then stilled in response to Jill's expression. "Not good?"

"No," was the whispered reply. Was she as blinded as Chris right now? Maybe. Possibly. Likely. Touching the ear piece to open the line she gave Piers a reply. "Negative Nivans. His focus is off right now but it's still focus. It will keep you both alive. Making him lose focus will only make it worse. You cannot tell him. If he remembers and directly asks, you are only to tell him that I am fine."

_Clear._

The red headed girl hugged her quickly. "Don't lose faith in him Jill. You know he loves you more than anything in the world."

"I know," Jill searched Claire's face. "But what if it's not enough?"

There was no time for the younger Redfield to respond because she heard the familiar chirp again. Sliding the screen open her eyes read the message quickly.

_It looks like it is just Nivans and your boy left. I don't know what happened to the rest of the team. I'm not sure if you are getting any information on this op right now since I know you are running Langshiang. He and Piers are OK. He is a man obsessed with revenge right now, but he is alive and better than a few weeks ago. I have intel that Sherry and Jake are being held at an underwater oil field. I need to get there but things have completely gone it shit here as you well know. But he's OK Jill. Remember that._

She barely had time to process what Kennedy was telling her before shouting on the other side of the room snapped her head up.

"The missile!" The shout came from across the room and both she and Claire froze in place. "It's airborne HQ! They didn't stop it! This damn thing is about to go global."

"Where is it heading?" Jill demanded.

"Tatchi."

Valentine swore and started trying to protect her men on the ground, thoughts of Chris pushed aside for the time being. The evacuation hadn't been moving nearly as fast as they'd hoped. Too many citizens resisting leaving their homes and it meant there were still a lot of her people still there.

The moment it hit she heard it. Collapsing into a chair she scrambled, trying to raise her men.

Chaos filled her head and she barely had time to think. Her belly was cramping fiercely and the nausea made her want to heave her socks up but she ignored it. Mostly, it seemed futile at this point, but she was trying to get as many men out alive as she could, she didn't have time to stop. The town had been hit with a missile that had spread the C virus, infecting almost ninety percent of the population now. She only had a few men left that weren't infected and she wasn't entirely sure how long they were going to last when it came down to it. With the BOW population so high and what's left of her team numbering only a handful, getting them out was going to be difficult. Not to mention the fact they had already rushed almost every available unit out the door when the word came down there was a potential threat. Other places were still mobilizing but she had no way of knowing just yet how long they would take. Hours at least. No one was close enough to do it any more quickly. Taking a deep breath, she stilled her mind and began giving orders.

And her men breathed a sigh of relief that it was Director Valentine leading the ragged pieces of the op.

She had entirely lost track of time. Claire had brought her some water and even a sandwich, but Jill didn't manage to eat anything. She'd been too busy getting her team to someplace they could hole up until the evac unit arrived. Not to mention the nausea had steadily gotten worse as the minutes ticked by. Combined with the cramping she was having, the brunette was pretty sure she'd never eat anything again. Her hands trembled and she felt the weight of the entire operation on her shoulders. Everything had gone so horribly wrong. So many lives lost...

A message had come in earlier but she had no idea how long ago. Piers would have contacted her via comms if it had been an emergency so she assumed it was an update on their status. The other side of the room had calmed down, but she hadn't asked what was happening over there. Her focus needed to remain ahead, on the team in Langshiang that was still in heavy danger. Taking a minute she popped open the PDA and read the message.

_We are enroute to an oil field outside the city to rescue Agent Birkin and Jake Muller. The Captain did not share the details with me, just stated we had precious cargo there that we needed to get to. I am sending you the coordinates now. Our ETA is still approximately an hour. If they are still alive there we are going to need an evac unit. I can only imagine what that is asking right now, with everything that has happened. Hopefully by the time we clear this scene you will be able to have one in the air._

_Ma'am, I believe he is remembering more but I'm not sure how much. He stood down when he finally confronted Ada Wong, who he believes responsible for the tragedy in Edonia. I don't know how Agent Kennedy managed to stop him, but it seemed to do some good. He has kept peace with his own thoughts for now. I'm still worried about him. He is not the Captain I know and I fear nothing will bring him back._

_I will let you know when we arrive Director. He will be coming home soon._

Finally, there were other units hastily slapped together and able to be airborne and enroute to the hot zones. She had pulled Barry and sent him, along with Rebecca, to the coordinates Piers had sent her last. There was no one else besides the two of them she'd rather have going. They were still a ways out but they would be there sooner rather than later. Unfortunately they didn't have more people to go with the recovery op so she hoped like hell they wouldn't need them. The BSAA had suffered heavy casualties, more than they had ever suffered before, and there was no way of knowing how long it would take them to recover. They were all still reeling from the numbers and she had almost gone numb.

A brief tearing sensation low in her belly nearly doubled her over in pain. When it passed she began to rise only to be stopped by her PDA. The familiar and dreaded sound called for her attention and she slid it open.

The screen flickered and what she saw chilled her to the bone. Piers' face wasn't his own and in her heart she knew what he had done. It looked like Hell was falling in around him and she felt the tears roll down her cheeks as her heart broke. "Piers," she whispered.

He gave her a small smile. "Director." No matter how he appeared, this was still Piers. Still the same man who had moved heaven and Earth to bring Chris home to her when she couldn't do it herself. She could see it in his eyes. And now she knew what price he'd paid for it. A price that would forever stain her soul. "There's not much time left. This place is falling apart around me and I don't think it's going to last much longer." He didn't let her speak. "Chris is in an escape pod headed for the surface. HAOS has been terminated. You'll have to adjust for currents, but his location should be close to the last set of coordinates I sent you." Something large crashed behind him and he didn't flinch. "He's not the same man that left all those months ago. I'm not sure if he ever will be again. He said he wanted me to take over his position in the BSAA." Nivans looked sad at that, but Jill wouldn't bet on the reason why. There were too many to name. "It doesn't look like that's going to happen unfortunately. But you need to know, it's important for you to understand, that Chris, that both of you, give the world a reason to hope." The screen flickered again and there was a wave of water behind him. Piers faltered as the wall of salt water hit him, but he didn't break the connection. "You have both stood for the world, for protecting those who are in it. You have been there when the world needed you. When there's nothing else, all that remains is hope. And you've both given so much. Given other people a reason to hope. Just please remember that. Chris lost his hope, but now he has a reason to believe in it again. Make sure he does. He's going to be broken when he makes it back to you. Make sure he remembers how to live Jill."

Tears dripped from the underside of her chin and she gave a shaky nod. "Thank you." There was nothing else for her to say.

"I did it for the future. For hope." The screen went dark and Piers was gone.

"Jill?" Claire's voice sounded from somewhere over her shoulder but Jill couldn't quite focus on it. Her heart was breaking for the sacrifice Piers had made and the reasons he had done it. Right now she wasn't sure how she was going to deal with his death being on her hands. Maybe if she hadn't given Chris top priority, had let Piers handle it how he saw fit, they would both be alive.

Moving to rise, she felt pain ripping through her belly. Jill let out a whimper of pain and stumbled forward.

"Jill!" Claire was by her side in a heartbeat, sliding an arm around the other woman's waist to steady her. "What's wrong?"

"It hurts..." was all she managed before she passed out. It was then the youngest Redfield noted the blood in the chair Jill had been sitting in and the crimson rapidly saturating her pants.

"We need an ambulance now!" Claire screamed at no one in particular. "She's bleeding heavily." Jill's color was several shades lighter than normal and she wondered how long the bleeding had gone on. It had been almost twelve hours since she had mentioned the cramping and nausea she'd been feeling. "I think she's losing the baby." Gently she slapped Jill's cheek. "Come on honey, not like this. You're not going out like this."


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: The characters are owned by Capcom, I'm just trying to fix their mess. Spoilers for RE6.

**02 July 2013**

The plate was placed in front of him and he looked at it a moment before cutting a bite. The steak wasn't quite cooked to his preference but he supposed Piers had been right... getting a good steak away from home was impossible. He smiled slightly at that, his heart still heavy at the loss. Nivans had been a good man. A better man than he was, truth be told. If Chris were honest with himself he'd admit the kid was the son he'd never had.

His memory had mostly returned to him, the bits and pieces finally falling into place to paint most of the picture for him. Some things were still hazy, but not many. There was no way he was going to be able to make it up to Jill, or even Claire. Right now he figured both of them were probably deciding who got to kill him first. And he fully deserved it.

The steak suddenly tasted like cardboard and he was relieved when one of his men made his way to the table.

"Captain," the man saluted him, "we've received new orders."

Chris set his coffee cup down. "All right." Rising from his chair he tried to separate himself once more. If there was another mission these men deserved a better Captain than his last group had received. His emotions had gotten the better of him and those deaths were completely his fault. "Better get to it then."

"Yes sir!" came the answer and the man turned and left.

Chris stood there a moment with his thoughts then followed.

Upon reaching the landing site, he offered a forced smile to Barry. "Where are we headed?"

A large hand clapped him on the shoulder and the big man smiled. "Orders from the Director are to bring you home."

"Jill..." he was a coward and he knew it. Facing her now was going to be the hardest thing he'd ever done. Harder than losing her was. "How is she?"

Barry eyed him a moment then sighed. "No one is supposed to tell you this, but I think we've all kept quiet long enough." Chris tensed, not sure what his friend meant. "Jill's in the hospital."

"Hospital!? How? Why?" The questions tumbled over each other in his head and the news rocked him to his core. Of all the people in the world he simply couldn't lose, it was Jill. "Is she OK?"

Hands up in supplication, Barry nodded. "She is right now. The docs want her to take it easy."

"What happened?"

Shaking his head as he answered, Barry knew Chris wasn't going to like it. "That I can't tell you. That's a discussion you need to be having with Jill."

"Dammit Burton!" Feeling his temper rise the Captain took a step back but Barry held his ground.

"You can rage at me all you want. But you need to talk to Jill. That's all I'm going to say. Rebecca has already talked to the doctor and said she would be released by the time we made it home. Claire is with her."

Picking a fight would make him feel better, but he knew the inclination for what it was. Another way to escape what he didn't want to face, so he refrained. "Fine. When can we leave?"

"We're leaving in 10."

Chris nodded and climbed aboard, his heart skittering in his chest as he thought of Jill in the hospital without him.

**03 July 2013**

"You about ready to blow this Popsicle stand?" He smiled at her from the door.

"You have no idea," she groaned, carefully getting out of the chair next to her bed. She'd already gotten dressed in the change of clothes Claire brought her, but she couldn't wait to get the hell out of here. The last time she'd been in the hospital, she was fresh from Wesker's control and it didn't bring back anything even remotely resembling pleasant memories. Except that Chris had never left her side.

Leon picked up her bag that was sitting just inside the doorway. "Claire said she'd have the house ready when you got there, that's why she isn't here to pick you up."

Jill nodded, gingerly moving to pick up and pack the few electronic items they'd allowed her to keep. She'd been forbidden from dealing with work issues but they'd let her have her cell and her Kindle. It wasn't much but at least it was something. She hadn't been allowed out of bed for two days and nearly climbed the walls out of boredom and frustration. Leon and Claire had given her minimal updates on the grounds she stayed put. Initially the doctor wanted her on complete bed rest from here on out, but she'd refused, promising to stay off her feet as much as possible and take leave from the BSAA until after her maternity leave. Complete bed rest would leave her bat shit crazy before it was over.

"Thanks for coming Leon." She offered him a smile and hugged him tight. "Thanks for everything."

"He's on the way home now. Should land tomorrow sometime." He took the small computer bag from her and slung it over his shoulder. "We picked up Sherry and Jake a few hours before they found Chris. Jake's blood has been handed over and they think they will have a vaccine within a few weeks."

"Not enough to help those we lost." Piers' face flashed in her mind.

Shaking his head Leon agreed, "No, it's not. But it will help other people." He led her down the hall, shooing away a well intentioned nurse pushing a wheelchair. The poor girl might lose her head if she tried to get Jill to actually sit in it. It was better to just avoid that little confrontation. Leon did take a minute to admire the rounded backside as she changed course. "Jill, I need you to do something for me."

"What do you need?"

"Jake... the information about his father..."

"Already handled. It's now classified information. No one has access to it but me. The only other people who know are the handful on your end."

They took the elevator down, holding their silence until they made it to Leon's car. It was slung low to the ground and she groaned slightly as she worked her way into the seat. He gently made fun of her growing size and she swatted at him.

"You all right?" he asked seriously, dropping into the driver's seat.

"So far. There was a separation of the placenta from the uterine wall. Small according to them, but enough to cause the bleeding."

"Does it have anything to do with the other problems?"

She smiled sadly and shook her head. "They don't think so. Bad luck and stress. I've got orders to stay off my feet and to take a leave of absence for now."

"Take advantage of it. You deserve it."

"Do I Leon?" Her blue-grey eyes held his and they burned with an emotion he didn't want to name. "All those people lost..."

"We all took a loss Jill." His hand covered hers briefly. "You can't take the blame for this. We all had decisions to make and some of them sucked. But it's the price we pay for doing our jobs." Leon offered her a reassuring smile. "Use this time to make Chris wait on you hand and foot. He has some sucking up to do."

"We're both so fucked up right now..." she trailed off. Was now really the right time for a child?

"Hey! Stop it!" He squeezed her hand. "Jill, you can't do this. You can't let the guilt eat at you like this or you're going to end up like Chris. Except you don't have the luxury of drinking yourself into oblivion right now."

She swallowed hard and after a moment gave a slight nod. "You're right. We've both got shit to deal with but that's what we have to do."

"There's the Director we all know and fear." He gave her a lopsided grin. "Let's get you home. Tomorrow is going to be a big day."

**04 July 2013**

The windowless room made him want to crawl out of his skin but since he couldn't do that, he paced. And answered question after question. But they weren't willing to answer any of his. Every time he asked about Jill he either got the run around or stone faced silence. He felt like a criminal right about now and he wasn't entirely sure he wasn't. There were so many amends he was going to have to make and he didn't even know where to start. But more than anything he wanted to see Jill. To hold her close and prove to himself she was all right. The most he had gotten from anyone was that she had lost a lot of blood but no one would tell him why. Right now it seemed they feared her a hell of a lot more than they feared him. Even intimidation of one of the rookie agents hadn't gotten answers, merely made the poor kid almost wet himself.

They hit the ground at 0600 and were immediately brought to the office for a debriefing. While the information wasn't forthcoming from them, he gathered from Barry that Jill had known what Piers had done and kept it off the record. Burton indicated she expected him to do the same. Otherwise it had all been him talking, and everyone knew he wasn't much of a talker.

Finally, after almost twelve hours in the hole, they had allowed him to leave. He wasn't sure what he expected, but the group gathered outside the room wasn't it. All his friends were there but his heart skipped a beat because Piers would never be there again.

Claire rushed to him, throwing herself into his arms and hugging him tightly. "We were so worried about you," she whispered softly. "You broke your promise..."

Holding his sister close he closed his eyes. "I know sis, I'm sorry. It won't happen again, I swear."

She started to respond as she pulled away but stopped, her head tilting to the side as she listened. "You're in _trouble_," Claire's voice was sing-song. The kind of tone she used to use when their parents had caught him misbehaving. "You're _so_ going to get it now."

He turned, his heart somewhere in his belly. She was racing down the hall to him, the sounds of her sneakers squeaking on the hard surface. Flinging herself into his arms, she slammed into him, nearly knocking him over and he stumbled back a few steps, taking her with him. Tears soaked his neck and shirt as she buried her face against him.

"Don't worry," he heard someone say behind him. Maybe Barry. "It's just the hormones."

Jill pulled away, her tear stained face angry. Then she gave him a right hook that nearly sent him to the floor.

"I don't think that was the hormones," Leon muttered, a smirk on his face.

Hormones? It was then Chris took stock of her. And the belly that was so blatantly pregnant. The dark blue dress pants and white button down shirt had obviously been tailored for her new shape but it was still evident.

His eyes flicked up to her face then back down to her swollen middle. "Jill?"

She was crying again, openly. Chris knew how much she hated to cry. "I found out the day after you left." He grabbed her by the arms and pulled her close. His eyes searching her face. "By the time I got to Edonia, you were gone."

"Christ," he muttered. Claire was right, he was in deep trouble. The kind he was never getting out of.

"I sent Piers after you." Hitting him the the chest feebly, his hands still holding her by the arms, her voice rose a few octaves. "You missed it all. The morning sickness! The nausea! This first kicks! You. Missed. Christmas." Tears were streaming down her face. He couldn't wipe them away fast enough. Over his shoulder a handkerchief appeared. Probably from Rebecca. He grabbed it and wiped her eyes. "And my birthday."

"I'm sorry." Hands went to her face, cupping it gently, forcing her to look at him. "I am so sorry." Something clicked in his head. "Piers knew." The B.S.A.A. Patch in his pocket felt like it was burning. It suddenly made more sense to him. Piers had used the virus to make sure Chris got home. Instead of using the Quik-Clot they all carried in their packs for bleeding control, he'd opted to use something that would not only heal him, but give him the strength to make sure his Captain would get out of there. Would be able to return to the love of his life and the child he didn't even know he was going to have.

"_I did it for the BSAA. For the future."_

She nodded, closing her eyes against the flood of salt water. "I told him not to tell you. He was supposed to bring you back immediately, but then we got the intel. There wasn't time to pull you out. To pull either of you out. I tried, I really did. We just weren't prepared for something this big. When we got the last set of coordinates from him we immediately put an evac team in the air. I pulled Barry and Rebecca from other ops. We had no idea what we might find."

God, he'd made such a mess of things. When she'd recovered from her captivity at Wesker's hands, they agreed they would no longer be active field agents. He wouldn't lie, he'd missed it. So when the recon opportunity came up, he's wanted to go. It seemed safe enough then. It was just recon. But they'd found evidence of the new virus. The C-virus. He'd wanted to find out more, see what kind of threat it really was. Be able to report back with something useful. Only moments before it all went down in a spectacular failure, he'd known about the attacks that were going to happen to China. There hadn't even been time to tell HQ what he knew.

Pulling her close, mindful of her belly, he hugged her tightly. "I'm so sorry Jill. I-" he didn't finish. There wasn't anything to say.

"You swore you wouldn't leave me again!" Her words were angry, but the fury had left her body.

"I know," regret colored his own words. But there was nothing to be done about it now. "I'm here now."

She stomped her foot, the heel of her shoe barely missing his own. "You've missed all the ultrasounds!" The grainy black and white photo appeared in her hand from her pocket.

Puling her face up, he kissed her tear stained cheeks. "I'll never miss another one." He kissed her forehead. "What are we having?"

"It's a boy," she whispered and opened her eyes. "We're having a boy."

"It's a boy!" Claire let out a victory whoop behind them. "I'm going to have a nephew!"

There were cheers and congratulations all around them, but Chris barely heard them. He'd tried to do this before, but she'd refused when he'd asked the first time. It hadn't been long after he'd rescued her and she told him she wasn't healed, wasn't ready yet. He wasn't taking no for an answer this time.

Dropping to a knee he took her hands in his. "Marry me Jill. Today, tomorrow, I don't care. Just marry me."

Nodding, the tears started again. "Yes." More cheers rose up all around them.

Chris leapt up, pulling her close and kissed her deeply. One hand rested against her belly and he felt his son kick. Their kiss ended and she rested her head against his shoulder. "What are we going to name him?"

"Piers," she whispered in his ear.

"I like the sound of that." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Let's go home. You've got months worth of stuff to tell me about."

.

Final Author's Note: After finishing Chris' campaign I had some serious issues with the things we saw. It made NO sense to me that Jill had no mention (A fact even the non Valenfield shippers also spoke up about). Seriously? He searches for 3 years to find her but all of a sudden it's like she doesn't exist? WTH? Also, the whole traumatic amnesia thing didn't quite add up for me. As a medic out here in the real world I had to grit my teeth to just accept it and keep going with it. I don't think Chris' personality was changed like some people maintain, I do feel we are seeing a older, more damaged version of Chris here but it's one we've seen hints of before now. Also, how in the nine Hells did they LOSE him? If he were in Edonia that whole time then the BSAA has a bunch of morons working for them. He was right where you left them! And finally, sending him right back to the field, with his very obvious PTSD, was one of the stupidest moves they could have made. A decision that truly cost lives. These were some of the things that just didn't set well with me and I couldn't let them slide. I hope I made what we were given work and that it was worth the read.

A big thank you to run-jill-run for the read thru:)

- Labrynth


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